A measure has been suggested by Republican U.S. Rep. Candice Miller to block the path of Asian carp and other invasive species to protect Great Lakes and to save an estimated loss of $1.9 billion to Northwest Indiana's economy.
He has introduced a bill that would require the separation of Lake Michigan from the Mississippi River watershed in the Chicago area.
If the bill gets green signal then the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers would construct barriers to break the connection between the two aquatic systems. There are some who are not very sure about the idea and have suggested alternative solutions.
They think more practical way would be to kill fish with gel caps and another way is to allow commercial fishermen to harvest them in masses. This can be done by attracting the species with pheromones to such areas where they could be harvested.
But Miller and other supporters do not think that any other way than their suggestive measure would work. "The Great Lakes region must address the dangers posed by Asian Carp migration but not in a way that devastates Northwest Indiana's economy", said U.S. Sen. Dan Coats, R-Ind.
Kay Nelson, director of environmental affairs for the Northwest Indiana Forum does not think that physical separation is that easy. As per his view, physical separation will require a lot many years to be implemented.
Moreover, research is needed to ensure that Northwest Indiana residents do not have to face any sort of harm from flooding. It also has to be seen as Lake Michigan residents do not face any problem from overflow contaminants and sediment re-suspension. There are a number of other complications involved in the physical separation process.